Thursday, 26 April 2012

I've been off work this week and have been busy doing very little and some odd jobs about the mansion that is Stoner Towers. I have, however found time to do some detail work on Underhill; this is my favourite bit of modelling and I have found the results pleasing.

The station and all the buildings are attached in their final resting places, the building at the front still has no explanation really but it has a dirt track leading up to the doors at one end and a fence separating it from the railway. At the other end it opens to the small yard area so I guess it may have belonged to some sort of small business, probably an animal food merchant.

The fiddliest thing I've made and installed is a Chris Veitch FR Disk signal... blimey I've done some swearing with this one: solder one bit on and the rest falls off, solder the rest back on and the new bit drops off... anyway I've ended up with a very nice looking signal, I bottled out of trying to make the 3D curly hand rail and just added a simple one. I can't make this one an operating model as I don't have an underside to the layout but the ones I will have on the main layout will be made to operate. Brave talk costs nothing.

I put the ground frame on the end of the platform next to the water tower which makes the lack of rodding less noticeable, this is a project for the future when I work out how to do it without spending much money.

The double Fairlie has acquired a driver, Fairlie patent plates and window glasses. The driver has had to have one leg and the other foot cut off and has had his bum filed flat to fit him in, I understand that this would be a handy procedure for drivers of the FR locos. I'm looking forward to making the second one - Lady Stoner but I must finish some other projects first. On which subject I did some more work on the new 0-8-0 last night, it's starting to look nice but I still need to work out how to attach the body to the chassis and I also think the steam pipes from the smoke box are not right so they will get the chop.

Early night tonight as I'm off to Llangollen for a couple of days with the camera, the forecast is for rain... super.

Friday, 20 April 2012

I spent the day adding the final coats of paint and going blind fixing the handrails on. It has some weight in the smoke boxes to aid traction, it actually runs very nicely and having tried it with my FR size stock it looks good too.

The driver's side, name plates and Fairlie patent plates will be the icing on the cake.

The fireman's side, I manger to break one of the window surrounds when I was cutting into it to add the coal bunker but it doesn't notice until I point it out... doh!

One end looks much like the other.

Very pleased with this loco, I think that 3D printing will be the saviour of minority modellers who don't have the skill/time to scratch build for them selves.

This one will be called 'Lord Stoner', the next one will be 'Lady Stoner' and won't have a cab roof. However I need to get some other stuff done before her ladyship comes along.

By way of a diversion from layout building or finishing anything else I've started I've been building a new loco. I say building but that is an exaggeration really as it is a Chris Ward 3D printed double Fairlie. It fits on a KATO shorty chassis and is fab. I've added some extra details and have started painting it, as usual I've used acrylics, in this case the main paintwork is Games Workshop snot green. An excellent name and an excellent colour.

Here it is with the roof off, I may do a second one with the open cab like this but for now I want to make this one with a lid.

Added whitemetal parts are from the box of bits but the sand pots are Langley Fairlie ones and the reversing lever is a Wills signal box lever, Dundas vac pipes.

Wednesday, 11 April 2012

I've not posted on here for a while because I've been mad busy at work over Easter and then I've been busy working on Underhill. I also had a visit from the chief engineer and his apprentice from the WEKbahn which was most enjoayble.

Progress has been very apparent, in that what was white is now brown and green. For some reason the camera didn't want to focus on the layout but you get the picture of the change.

Still lots to do but I'm quite pleased with the overall look, the backscene is a faller one which I've had to chop about a fair amount. I also hadn't realised how short the sections were which means that there is a join in the sky at the moment. A pine tree will cover it, hopfully.

Next thing to do is to glue the buildings down and to finish off the area at the front.. I also have to decide if the shed with the orange tiled roof is railwayside of the fence or not; I think it probably is.

About Me

I am the benign dictator of the Isle of Stoner which is a small but perfect Island which lies roughly one hundred miles south of Newquay, Cornwall. The sun always shines and the population are always happy.